Irish voters will decide on May 22 if marriage rights should extend to same-sex couples. The proposed amendment, to be added to the Irish Constitution’s clause on marriage in the event of a yes vote, reads:

Marriage may be contracted in accordance with law by two persons without distinction as to their sex.

And in Irish:

Féadfaidh beirt, gan beann ar a ngnéas, conradh pósta a dhéanamh de réir dlí.

The Yes Campaign

Yes Equality: The Campaign for Civil Marriage Equality, a new independent Irish civil society group, was launched on March 9, 2015, in Dublin. The group has been formed to coordinate and lead the campaign to win the marriage equality referendum.

The Yes Equality campaign was jointly established by GLEN, Marriage Equality and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, all of which have a long history of working for equality for LGBT people. The three organizations came together in 2013 to successfully encourage the Convention on the Constitution to propose a marriage equality referendum, and collaborated in November 2014 under the "Yes Equality" banner to lead a successful nationwide register to vote drive.

The Yes Equality campaign has volunteers and supporters all across the country who have organized into nearly 40 local Yes Equality groups to coordinate the campaign at the grassroots level.

Yes Equality is also supported by a wide range of civil society organizations such as trades unions, women’s groups, all political parties, and youth and student organizations (see, for example, the campaign video by Trinity College Student Union below). A range of faith-based and professional groups including teachers, doctors, psychologists, academics and lawyers, and a diverse range of individuals from all across Irish society—from all age groups, backgrounds, political traditions and religions, are all campaigning for a yes vote.

Polls

Recent polls have shown a consistently high level of support for a yes vote—hovering at around 70 percent—suggesting that for the majority of Irish people, marriage equality is a matter of justice and fairness. However, the only poll that matters is the one on May 22. To convert poll support into support at the ballot box, Yes Equality is engaging a nationwide conversation on why a yes vote is so important for Ireland. Over the coming eight weeks, the campaign will be calmly, confidently and positively making the case for granting freedom to marry to all loving couples in Ireland, regardless of their gender or sexuality.

For more details see the campaign website.